Xiaomi Redmi 7 review and beginner questions?
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Device : REDMI 7 onclite DUAL SIM.
Halium generic device.
OTA 13?
Xenial Xerus.
Hi! First post for me.
I want to do a review and explain my way to get here...
I choose this phone cause it was the most recent and powerful of the ubuntu touch list ( https://devices.ubuntu-touch.io/ ) even if it was an unoffcial port.
I followed this installation : https://github.com/Vin4ter/Ubports-Onclite-redmi7/blob/master/README.md working well !Then i tried differents things and i didn't found any information.
-1 : I tried the terminal whith apt-get and i realised that some paquets didn't want to be write, i found after that the device is in read only (default) setting. I didn't turn it to read and write cause i'm not an expert of linux and i read that the paquets works for ubuntu doesn't work for UT ( it makes sense ...)
-2 : so i tried libertine that i didn't know before. I realised after a long seeking that it wasn't a good idea to import ubuntu apps in UT. ( usefull for some apps may be but not for me with my actual knowledge and use ).
-3 how do I know that my apt update didn't change anything for "normal OTA " update ( maybe no update to me cause unofficial )
For everything else phone works great! I have mms issues but it gloabaly works and i will report it in the bug report post ( MNC and MCC port can't be set ) but i'am a bit lost. Bluetooth works, easy to connect to Klipsh speackers. I didn't try SSH or data transfert but USB media transfert doesn't work ( it said i the installation instruction )
So i write this post cause i didn't find information or it was confuse ( may be cause i'm not a ubuntu user but raspberry pi ). I saw lot a video showing ubuntu running on the deviece but no more information after that and i start to though that nobody use this phone. So if somebody can read that and avoid my mistakes...
Anyway, i would like to say thanks to everybody work on that to be more independent from google and i'll be happy to help if i can. I'm not developer yet but may be one day...
Enjoy.
Tchan from France.
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thanks for the post, im thinking of buying one. hows the camera? my nexus 6p camera looks fisheyed
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Hi, Camera works normally.
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My camera isn't bad, but i will say i just compared our phones and it seems their the same speed. Just incase anyone thinking of buying either or.
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@augustblake difficult to find information about Xiaomis. The device list says Xiaomi Redmi 7 is one of the most mature devices for Ubuntu touch:
https://devices.ubuntu-touch.io/
but a youtube video says also Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 everything is working:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYboK4d98BE&t=29s
but there is also Redmi 7a:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kV3SAWdxhwU&t=922s
Unfortunately, information is scattered everywhere. Which Xiaomi is best for Ubuntu Touch at the moment?
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@peter-gamma Don t forget about Redmi Y3 which is difficult to discern from Redmi 7. Which one to choose, and where to buy?
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Hi, I see you're looking to buy a Xiaomi device for Ubuntu Touch.
Why do you search specifically Xiaomi ?What I would do is search for what I can purchase within my budget and requirements. Then I'll check that Ubuntu Touch has been ported to this device.
While looking real fast, I see that Xiaomi's naming is not easy to follow... The codename given (onclite, lavender, ...) might help you figure things out.
UBports does not sell phones and do not have partnership with resellers. So there are no guidelines on how to buy your hardware.
You can check out on telegram for local groups (German, French, Dutch, ...) see if you can have people in your country able to help you out on finding a reseller.
Else you can find things on ebay or other online stores...
Good luck -
@peter-gamma
HI,
I saw your differents posts, Why do you specially want a Xiaomi?
I choose the Redmi 7 cause it was quiet new, fully fonctional and cheap but I was ( still ) beginer with UT.
I didn't have enough money when my phone broke but if I should chose today, I will chose a other one ( maybe a made in germany one...) even if the phone works fine. The Redmi 7 have only manual install.
For sure it's not easy to find information when you start to looking for a UT compatible devices but as "app lee" said you can join group in Telegram and ask people.
Don't ask to port to a new device and try to look for informations before asking.
Also I don't think there is a "best" device for UT cause everythings change thanks to all the guys who works for porting or improving the existants devices.Let's try UT!
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@tchan
Vern Kuato, developer of the instruction for UT on Redmi Note 7/7S says:«I'd prefer to say to use Official Installer rather than old method in this video, and yes everything is working with official one, also OTA support»:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYboK4d98BE&t=29s
and also Redmi 7 seems to be mature with only minor bugs:
https://github.com/Vin4ter/Ubports-Onclite-redmi7/blob/master/README.md
and you can write issues on the Github page. It is great when the developer is present and responsive.
Devices can be found on ebay, that is true. Xiaomi Redmi 7a is the easiest to find. But i still miss information whether Bluetooth is working:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kV3SAWdxhwU&t=922s
the Xiami Redmi 7 variants are powerful and can be bought for about 100 USD, that is about half the price of a PinePhone, shipping and import taxes included. Why to pay more? But a Wiki page with all the variants, what is working, and what is not working would be helpful, with links to the installation files.
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@peter-gamma
I can tell you that everything works on the Redmi 7 Onclite but the MTP trasnfert.
Then, maybe it's better to have a phone working with the installer and have the OTA.
For the Lavander, I think you can find the guy who do the port and ask him, if he is responsive as you said but UT community is more responsive than Google, Xiaomi...Good luck and give a feed back when you done it, it can help!
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If you're looking for variants, I don't know what you can expect.
Because variants are somehow different
hence it might require a specific port.Use the list of known devices or try variants at your own risks.
About bluetooth, that is something UT is not very good with.
You can use BT speakers but placing calls don't really work.
Some devices are better than others, but that is a known issue that we hope can be fixed by rebasing on 20.04... -
Thanks, Tchan, the Redmi 7 Onclite seems really to be an attractive device for Ubuntu touch. Bluetooth works with this device, if I understood it right. What about Bluetooth keyboards, do they work with Onclite? Did someone test it?
And what about Bluetooth low energy? I m struggeling to find followers for an open source ANT+ Bluetooth low energy Bike computer and sports watch project, which can run on a Linux phone or a Linux watch, so I promote it everywhere:
https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=10172
Are ANT+ sticks practical for Linux phones and Linux watches? Is it not better to use Bluetooth low energy for these devices? Does Bluetooth low energy work with Onclite and Ubuntu Touch?
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@peter-gamma
I tried a wireless keyboard with a dongle, it's works perfect without any setting ( i don't know with bt). It looks like work like this on android devices too.
No idea for ANT+ but there is some tracker sport apps on the store.
Also I don't want to make too much add for the Redmi 7. Just said it works for a daily use perfectly. -
@tchan Thank your for your test and for sharing your experience. That’s enough for my purpose. I already bought a Redmi 7 on ebay, and will test it further.
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Hi @tchan
Can you confirm that before I follow the Github instrutions, I would need to unlock the bootloader first by using the guide set out on the LineageOS website here: https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/onclite/install ??
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@mdj
Hi,
I dindn't follow this page but it's the same till step 6.
You need to install TWRP with adb to flash the zip files after.
I followed this website it was clear https://krispitech.com/category/xiaomi/redmi-7/ but XDA should be the same but it's more messy for me.
Good luck and give your feedback! -
@tchan Thanks for that.
I finally managed to get it installed but only after flashing v9 of the GSI image, for some reason I get an error message when flashing v10.
The Suru Dark theme is looking very nice on this handset and I've been impressed with the performance, even on the 2 GB RAM handset I'm running on.
I'm noticing that a few of the Nextcloud apps don't want to load (Newsie, uMarks & Jotit Notes) as well as several webapps such as the newer version of Tweetdeck. Of course being webapps I can run them in the browser and they run fine there.
I can confirm that the bugs listed on the Github page are present i.e graphic glitches & WiFi randomly disconnecting but these aren't much of a distraction.
Bluetooth is working as well as can be expected, I was able to connect to a Raspberry Pi running Balena-Sound. The camera app can be a bit glitchy and freezes at times.
I'm now left wondering whether getting v10 of GSI installed would improve some of these app loading issues?
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@mdj
Nice if you manage to do it!
I think the device will be integrate to the installer (i don't now when ), cause someone is working on it if I understood correctly what I saw in the telegram group and on gitlab.
I can't tell you why you had a problem with the v10 but still it's a General System Image ( GSI ) so no OTA for us now.Enjoy UT.
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@tchan many Android phones cannot write to the external SD card. Does write to the external SD card work on Redmi 7 with Ubuntu Touch?
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@peter-gamma
Sorry, it's maybe my bad English( or my knowledge with computer ) , but I'm not sure to understand...
I can tranfert pictures to SD card and saw them on my laptop. The same in the other way, I didn't try something else.